CN1393090A

Movatterモバイル変換

Info

Publication number: CN1393090A
Application number: CN01802935A
Authority: CN
Inventors: M·莫斯塔法
Original assignee: Nokia Inc
Current assignee: Nokia Inc
Priority date: 2000-08-02
Filing date: 2001-07-30
Publication date: 2003-01-22
Anticipated expiration: 2021-07-30
Also published as: AU7985101A; DE60113436T2; JP4194837B2; EP1308013B1; AU767934B2; ATE304774T1; US10581792B2; JP2005287016A; ES2245991T3; DE60113436D1; KR20020040832A; FI20001741L; KR100592467B1; ZA200203010B; JP2004505384A; US20180077107A1; BRPI0107066B1; US20020073205A1; EP1308013A1; FI112307B

Abstract

Translated fromChinese

一种通信方法，包括步骤：发送器21将包括了至少一个流式分量和描述此流式分量的信息的消息传送给通信服务器MMSC，通信服务器作出响应，将通知消息发送给接收器24，通知可以接收此流式分量。通知消息是多媒体消息，包括对流式分量的描述。通信服务器MMSC和接收器形成流式传输对话，利用描述流式分量的信息来传送流式分量。然后通信服务器MMSC在流式传输对话中将流式分量以顺序子部分的形式传送给接收器24。还介绍了与这种方法相关的通信系统20，通信服务器MMSC，通信设备21，24和计算机程序产品。

A communication method, comprising steps: sender 21 transmits a message including at least one streaming component and information describing the streaming component to communication server MMSC, and the communication server responds by sending a notification message to receiver 24, notifying This streaming component can be received. Notification messages are multimedia messages including descriptions of streaming components. The communication server MMSC and the receiver form a streaming session, transferring the streaming components with information describing the streaming components. The communication server MMSC then transmits the streaming components to the receiver 24 in the form of sequential subparts in a streaming session. A communication system 20, communication server MMSC, communication devices 21, 24 and computer program products related to this method are also described.

Description

Translated fromChinese

形成多媒体流式传输对话的方法Method of forming a multimedia streaming session

本发明涉及通信服务，尤其但不唯一地涉及多媒体消息服务(MMS)中的流式传输。The present invention relates to communication services, particularly but not exclusively to streaming in Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS).

电子邮件(email)是一种消息传递服务，可允许以电子格式进行快速、经济的通信。电子邮件消息通过因特网可以送至世界各地，而且在许多情况下都是免费的。另外，相同的电子邮件消息可以传送给多个接收者。此项技术称为多信道传送。由于电子邮件消息的传递是完全自动的，因此电子邮件消息可以在发送后很短时间内送达。电子邮件消息可以携带计算机文件如文档，程序文件和不同的媒体文件如音频或视频剪辑。Electronic mail (email) is a messaging service that allows for quick and economical communication in electronic format. E-mail messages can be sent anywhere in the world via the Internet, and in many cases are free. Additionally, the same email message can be sent to multiple recipients. This technique is called multicasting. Since the delivery of e-mail messages is completely automatic, e-mail messages can be delivered within a short time after they are sent. Email messages can carry computer files such as documents, program files and different media files such as audio or video clips.

拥有个人计算机(PC)的普通家庭用户不愿意将PC与他们的电子邮件系统(例如因特网)永久地连接，而是希望在上一次电子邮件消息读取对话后与存储消息的电子邮件服务器建立临时和远程的连接。利用这种连接和电子邮件消息读取程序，新的电子邮件消息可从电子邮件服务器传送到PC的存储器或硬盘中，然后在连接时读取或者是在连接关闭后读取。PC和电子邮件服务器之间的数据传送通常利用与PC连接的调制解调器来进行。The average home user with a personal computer (PC) is unwilling to permanently connect the PC to their e-mail system (such as the Internet), but wants to establish a temporary connection with the e-mail server where the messages are stored after the last e-mail message reading session. and remote connections. Using this connection and the e-mail message reading procedure, new e-mail messages can be transferred from the e-mail server to the PC's memory or hard disk, and then read on connection or after the connection is closed. Data transfer between the PC and the e-mail server is usually performed using a modem connected to the PC.

在下文中，术语“发送器”是指用于传送接收器所需数据的装置，“接收器”是指用于接收数据且数据希望送达的装置。Hereinafter, the term "transmitter" refers to a device for transmitting data desired by a receiver, and "receiver" refers to a device for receiving data and to which the data is intended.

图1表示了基于因特网的电子邮件系统10的示意图，它包括发送器11、接收器15、具有发送器的电子邮件服务器13和接收器的电子邮件服务器14的因特网12。Figure 1 shows a schematic diagram of an Internet-basede-mail system 10 comprising asender 11, areceiver 15, an Internet 12 with ane-mail server 13 for the sender and ane-mail server 14 for the receiver.

在因特网中，电子邮件消息利用一些众所周知的协议来传送。简单地说，电子邮件消息一旦写好就分成为标有接收器地址的单个单元，并传送给发送器的电子邮件服务器。发送器的电子邮件服务器将消息通过因特网转发给接收器的电子邮件服务器。当下一步接收器通过因特网与接收器的电子邮件服务器连接并通过电子邮件读取程序检查是否已收到新的电子邮件时，接收器可以通过连接(如调制解调器连接)下载任何新收到的电子邮件消息。当已完全接收电子邮件消息时，接收器可将其显示给用户。应注意的是，在传送的各个阶段，根据所利用的数据传送协议通常将电子邮件消息分成许多小的信息包。在接收时，接收器将所有的信息包收集在一起，将它们以正确的顺序(如需要的话)组合，将电子邮件消息重建为原有的格式，最后将电子邮件消息显示给接收器的用户。In the Internet, e-mail messages are transmitted using several well-known protocols. Simply put, an e-mail message, once written, is divided into individual units that are addressed to the receiver and transmitted to the sender's e-mail server. The sender's email server forwards the message over the Internet to the receiver's email server. When the next step the receiver connects with the receiver's email server via the internet and checks if new emails have been received through the email reader program, the receiver can download any newly received emails through the connection (such as a modem connection) information. The receiver may display the email message to the user when it has been fully received. It should be noted that at various stages of transmission, email messages are typically broken into many small packets depending on the data transfer protocol utilized. On reception, the receiver gathers all the packets together, assembles them in the correct order (if necessary), reconstructs the email message into its original format, and finally displays the email message to the receiver's user .

上述电子邮件传送系统很方便，并可实现多信道传送，但它最适合接收电子邮件消息并在用户方便的时候显示消息，这也是其最初的目的。因此，给定电子邮件消息的内容只能在完成电子邮件消息到接收器的传送后才能被访问。这对纯文本格式的电子邮件消息来说不存在真正的问题，但对于大量的媒体或多媒体内容(剪辑)来说就存在着缺点，即接收器用户无法在下载仍在进行时启动显示剪辑。另一个缺点是为了接收电子邮件消息，接收器必须有足够大的内存来容纳整个消息。特别是在移动通信网络或者是部分通信线路是由无线电连接形成的任何其它网络中，还有一个问题是接收较长的电子邮件消息是否会由例如无线电覆盖的临时损耗或恶化而发生中断或错误。移动终端还只有有限的内存来存储接收到的电子邮件消息，这进一步加剧了与在接收器中容纳消息有关的问题。通过多媒体消息服务(MMS)能至少部分地减轻这些问题。The e-mail delivery system described above is convenient and allows for multi-channel delivery, but it is best suited for receiving e-mail messages and displaying them at the user's convenience, which is its original purpose. Therefore, the content of a given email message can only be accessed after delivery of the email message to the receiver is complete. This presents no real problem for plain text email messages, but has the disadvantage for large amounts of media or multimedia content (clips) that the receiver user cannot initiate display of the clip while the download is still in progress. Another disadvantage is that in order to receive an email message, the receiver must have memory large enough to hold the entire message. Especially in mobile communication networks or any other network in which part of the communication line is formed by radio connections, there is also the question of whether reception of longer e-mail messages can be interrupted or erroneous due to e.g. temporary loss or deterioration of radio coverage . Mobile terminals also have limited memory to store received e-mail messages, which further exacerbates the problems associated with accommodating messages in the receiver. These problems can be at least partially mitigated by Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS).

MMS是一种新型的端对端消息发送方法，用于具有文本和/或多媒体内容的多媒体消息的单向传送。MMS提供了在移动用户之间和移动用户与因特网之间发送多媒体消息的可能性。这是执行第三代移动通信网络中的MMS的已达成共识的解决方案。在第三代合作项目(3GPP)技术规范23.140 V.3.0.1“多媒体消息服务(MMS)，功能描述，第二级(1999年版)”中描述了所提出的MMS当前的确定特征。在3GPP 23.140中提出的MMS利用存储转发方法以传送多媒体消息。多媒体消息构建成使媒体内容、描述内容所必需的信息和识别多媒体消息所希望的接收器的地址信息封装在一起。然后将多媒体消息发送给MMS中心MMSC，后者又向接收器通知可以接收此多媒体消息。接收终端整体地下载多媒体消息，一旦下载完毕并存储在接收终端中后就显示给用户。MMS is a novel peer-to-peer messaging method for the one-way delivery of multimedia messages with text and/or multimedia content. MMS offers the possibility to send multimedia messages between mobile users and between mobile users and the Internet. This is an agreed solution to implement MMS in third generation mobile communication networks. The current defining features of the proposed MMS are described in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Technical Specification 23.140 V.3.0.1 "Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), Functional Description, Level 2 (1999 Edition)". MMS, proposed in 3GPP 23.140, utilizes a store-and-forward method to deliver multimedia messages. A multimedia message is structured such that media content, information necessary to describe the content, and address information identifying the intended recipient of the multimedia message are encapsulated together. The multimedia message is then sent to the MMS center MMSC, which in turn notifies the receiver that the multimedia message can be received. The receiving terminal downloads the multimedia message in its entirety and displays it to the user once downloaded and stored in the receiving terminal.

应该理解的是，虽然术语“多媒体消息”通常描述的是含有超过一种类型的内容的消息，但在此应用中，此术语延伸到只含有一种媒体类型的消息。It should be understood that while the term "multimedia message" generally describes messages containing more than one type of content, in this application the term extends to messages containing only one type of media.

当前所指定的MMS具有接收终端必须在将多媒体消息显示给用户之前存储多媒体消息的缺点。因此，接收终端的存储器大小决定了所能下载的多媒体消息大小的上限。国际专利申请WO99/166746通过在整个信息不适合接收终端的存储器时将消息分成多个子消息(片段)而解决了这一问题。这些子消息很小，足以使得接收终端可以将各子消息整个地单独下载。在这种情况下，接收终端首先下载第一子消息。在完全下载了第一子消息后，接收终端可以显示第一子消息。在显示了第一子消息后接收终端可下载第二子消息并显示第二子消息。下载每一子消息并单独地显示各子消息。子消息的大小由接收终端的存储器大小而定，其必须小到能存入存储器中。MMS as currently specified has the disadvantage that the receiving terminal must store the multimedia message before displaying it to the user. Therefore, the memory size of the receiving terminal determines the upper limit of the size of the multimedia message that can be downloaded. International Patent Application WO99/166746 solves this problem by breaking the message into sub-messages (fragments) when the entire message does not fit in the memory of the receiving terminal. These sub-messages are small enough to enable the receiving terminal to download each sub-message individually as a whole. In this case, the receiving terminal first downloads the first sub-message. After the first sub-message is completely downloaded, the receiving terminal may display the first sub-message. After displaying the first sub-message, the receiving terminal may download the second sub-message and display the second sub-message. Each sub-message is downloaded and each sub-message is displayed individually. The size of the sub-message is determined by the memory size of the receiving terminal, which must be small enough to fit in the memory.

除了MMS之外，在因特网中还利用流式传输技术来通过固定线路传送信息。术语“流式传输”通常用于描述在媒体流通过数据网络传送给客户时以连续的方式显示这个或这些媒体流，例如音频或视频流，或者是不同流的结合。“流”通常是指可使接收器显示一些连续数据如运动画面、声音或音乐的数据流。在典型的视频流中，每秒传送10到20帧图像。实际上，流式传输可以是实况(实时)的，或者是以请求模式来执行的。如其名称所示的那样，“实况流式传输”描述了从实况源、如由视频照相机所产生的数字图像流中形成媒体流，而“请求式流式传输”描述了从例如存储在服务器中的文件中形成媒体流。流式传输还涉及建立流式传输对话，在此期间信息流传送给客户。In addition to MMS, streaming technology is also used in the Internet to transmit information over fixed lines. The term "streaming" is generally used to describe the display of a media stream or streams, such as audio or video streams, or a combination of different streams, in a continuous fashion as the stream is transmitted to a client over a data network. "Stream" generally refers to a stream of data that enables a receiver to display some continuous data such as motion picture, sound or music. In a typical video stream, 10 to 20 frames of images are delivered per second. In practice, streaming can be live (real-time), or performed in on-demand mode. As the names suggest, "live streaming" describes the formation of a media stream from a live source, such as a stream of digital images produced by a video camera, while "on-demand streaming" The media stream is formed in the file. Streaming also involves establishing a streaming session, during which information streams to the client.

流式传输具有两个十分重要的功能，即流式传输控制和媒体传输。流式传输控制涉及利用已协商或预配置的参数值组来建立、管理和终止流式传输对话。媒体传输涉及在建立对话的过程中利用已同意或已协商的传输协议来传输媒体。例如，在因特网中存在达成广泛共识的协议，可提供流式传输控制和媒体传输的功能，这些协议可以在流式传输应用中作为传输协议。Streaming has two very important functions, streaming control and media delivery. Streaming control involves establishing, managing, and terminating streaming sessions using negotiated or preconfigured sets of parameter values. Media transport involves transporting media using an agreed or negotiated transport protocol during the establishment of a session. For example, there are widely agreed upon protocols in the Internet that provide streaming control and media transport functions, and these protocols can be used as transport protocols in streaming applications.

虽然流式传输广泛应用于因特网中，但仍然需要对其进行调整，以适于在移动通信网络中使用。应该理解的是，由于移动终端通常只具有有限的存储能力(存储器)，因此在移动网络中希望使用流式传输。然而，目前的移动通信网络不支持流式传输，其原因如下所述。Although streaming is widely used in the Internet, it still needs to be adapted for use in mobile communication networks. It should be understood that streaming is desirable in mobile networks since mobile terminals generally have only limited storage capabilities (memory). However, current mobile communication networks do not support streaming for the reasons described below.

如当前MMS规范中所提出的包含有媒体内容、消息描述和地址信息的单一封装体与媒体内容的流式传输不兼容。为了建立流式传输的对话，接收终端需要预先知道与媒体内容有关的一定的信息。这些信息包括但不限于包含在多媒体消息中的媒体类型，媒体的编码方式，以及可用来下载媒体内容的合适的传输协议。由于当前的MMS规范需要描述媒体内容的信息与多媒体消息本身封装在一起，接收终端无法得到关于媒体内容属性的先验知识，因而无法建立任何形式的流式传输对话。因此，根据目前的MMS规范，必须将整个多媒体消息下载到接收终端中以抽取多媒体内容的细节。只有在此之后才能播放任何媒体内容，例如视频和/或音频剪辑给接收终端的用户。由于多媒体剪辑通常具有大量的位，因而接收终端如移动站需要相对较大的存储器来完全地接收剪辑，这就限制了当前MMS的使用。多媒体消息在显示前需要完全地下载，在一定条件下，例如在多媒体消息很大时，或者连接的数据传输率很低时，还产生了显著的延误。A single capsule containing media content, message description and address information as proposed in the current MMS specification is not compatible with streaming of media content. In order to establish a streaming session, the receiving terminal needs to know certain information related to the media content in advance. This information includes, but is not limited to, the type of media contained in the multimedia message, how the media is encoded, and the appropriate transport protocol that can be used to download the media content. Since the current MMS specification requires the information describing the media content to be packaged together with the multimedia message itself, the receiving terminal cannot obtain prior knowledge about the properties of the media content, and therefore cannot establish any form of streaming session. Therefore, according to the current MMS specification, the entire multimedia message must be downloaded to the receiving terminal to extract the details of the multimedia content. Only after this can any media content, such as video and/or audio clips be played to the user of the receiving terminal. Since multimedia clips typically have a large number of bits, a receiving terminal such as a mobile station requires a relatively large memory to fully receive the clip, which limits the use of current MMS. Multimedia messages need to be completely downloaded before being displayed, and under certain conditions, such as when the multimedia message is large, or the connection has a low data transfer rate, significant delays occur.

还应强调的是由当前的MMS规范所建议的寻址方案不能促进在此系统中进行流式传输。当前的MMS可视为“面向发送器”的系统。换句话说，发送器决定将何种媒体内容发送给接收器，将媒体内容封装在多媒体消息中并将其传送给所需的接收器。另一方面，流式传输更倾向于“面向接收器”。为建立流式传输对话，通常需要在接收器和发送器，例如基于网络的服务器之间形成流式传输连接，一旦建立了必要的连接，内容就从服务器中流式传送。因此，流式传输对话的建立需要接收器知道媒体内容的位置，但不需要要求媒体内容直接地寻址接收器。It should also be emphasized that the addressing scheme suggested by the current MMS specification does not facilitate streaming in this system. Current MMS can be viewed as a "sender-oriented" system. In other words, the sender decides what media content to send to the receiver, encapsulates the media content in a multimedia message and delivers it to the desired receiver. Streaming, on the other hand, is more "receiver oriented". To establish a streaming session, it is generally necessary to form a streaming connection between the receiver and the sender, such as a web-based server, from which the content is streamed once the necessary connection is established. Thus, establishment of a streaming session requires the receiver to know the location of the media content, but does not require the media content to be directly addressed to the receiver.

现在发明了一种新的解决方法，它可以避免或至少减轻现有技术中的问题。A new solution has now been invented which avoids or at least alleviates the problems of the prior art.

根据本发明的第一方面，提供了一种通信方法，包括步骤：According to a first aspect of the present invention, a communication method is provided, comprising the steps of:

通过通信服务器从第一终端中接收内容和描述此内容的信息；以及receiving content and information describing the content from the first terminal via the communication server; and

从通信服务器中发送通知消息给第二终端，通知消息通知可以接收内容；sending a notification message from the communication server to the second terminal, and the notification message notifies that the content can be received;

其特征在于，所述方法还包括：It is characterized in that the method also includes:

利用描述内容的信息在通信服务器和第二终端之间形成流式传输对话；以及forming a streaming session between the communication server and the second terminal using the information describing the content; and

在流式传输对话期间以顺序子部分的形式将内容从通信服务器中传送给第二终端。The content is transferred from the communication server to the second terminal in sequential sub-parts during the streaming session.

由于利用第二终端的接收器不需要等到内容完全地被接收，因此以流的形式将内容传送给第二终端可允许对内容进行快速存取。Streaming the content to the second terminal may allow quick access to the content since the receiver utilizing the second terminal does not need to wait until the content is fully received.

内容和描述内容的信息最好以分开的消息形式从第一终端发送给通信服务器。这就允许分开地进行发送，例如将内容发送给一个通信服务器和将通知消息发送给接收器。The content and information describing the content are preferably sent from the first terminal to the communication server in separate messages. This allows for separate transmissions, such as content to a communication server and notification messages to receivers.

描述内容的信息最好在通知消息中从通信服务器发送给第二终端。The information describing the content is preferably sent from the communication server to the second terminal in a notification message.

所述方法最好还包括通过通信服务器将描述内容的信息作为多媒体消息的媒体分量发送给第二终端。Preferably, the method further comprises sending, via the communication server, information describing the content to the second terminal as a media component of the multimedia message.

发送作为媒体分量的流式分量的描述允许在微小变化范围内利用现有的多媒体消息系统。它还允许在同一多媒体消息中嵌入超过一个媒体分量，其中一些或所有媒体分量可以是流式分量的描述。Sending the description of the streaming components as media components allows the utilization of existing multimedia messaging systems within minor variations. It also allows more than one media component to be embedded in the same multimedia message, some or all of which may be descriptions of streaming components.

多媒体消息最好包括至少一个非流式分量和至少一个流式分量的描述。The multimedia message preferably includes a description of at least one non-streaming component and at least one streaming component.

通信方法最好还包括在流式传输对话期间以流的形式在第二终端处显示所接收的内容的步骤。第二终端可以立刻启动并显示内容，并可以在传送期间进行一定的操作(如暂停或终止数据传送)。Preferably, the communication method further comprises the step of displaying the received content in stream form at the second terminal during the streaming session. The second terminal can immediately start and display the content, and can perform certain operations (such as suspending or terminating data transmission) during the transmission.

所述方法最好还包括在第二终端处决定在某一时间是否接收内容，以及如果决定接收内容的话就形成流式传输对话的步骤。Preferably, the method further comprises the steps of deciding at the second terminal whether to receive the content at a certain time, and forming a streaming session if so.

通信服务器最好包括用于存储和传送内容的内容服务器以及用于接收和传送通知的通知服务器，其中内容服务器和通知服务器具有物理关系，该物理关系从由单一单元、分开单元、分布在不同地理位置处的分开单元组成的组中选择。The communication server preferably includes a content server for storing and delivering content and a notification server for receiving and delivering notifications, wherein the content server and the notification server have a physical relationship ranging from a single unit, separate units, geographically distributed Select from the group consisting of separate units at the location.

通信方法最好还包括在第一终端处产生内容的步骤。在第一终端处产生的内容最好流向内容服务器，且内容的传送在产生内容的期间进行。从而，与内容在第一终端处完全地产生或大部分产生后再流向内容服务器相比，用户就可以更早地获得内容。Preferably, the communication method further comprises the step of generating content at the first terminal. The content generated at the first terminal is preferably streamed to the content server, and the delivery of the content takes place during the generation of the content. Thus, the user can obtain the content earlier than when the content is completely or mostly generated at the first terminal and then flows to the content server.

当采用流式内容的产生时，描述内容的信息最好在内容产生完成之前发送，因此第二终端可以在内容产生完成之前开始接收内容。When the generation of streaming content is employed, the information describing the content is preferably transmitted before the completion of the content generation, so that the second terminal can start receiving the content before the completion of the content generation.

在通信服务器和第二终端之间的流式传输对话期间，接收器最好可以发布终止命令来终止对话。流式传输对话最好响应终止命令而终止。During the streaming session between the communication server and the second terminal, the receiver can preferably issue a termination command to terminate the session. The streaming session is preferably terminated in response to a terminate command.

通知消息最好包括第二终端所要求的信息，以便与内容服务器形成流式传输对话。The notification message preferably includes information required by the second terminal in order to form a streaming session with the content server.

所述方法最好作为多媒体消息服务(MMS)的一部分来执行。The method is preferably performed as part of a Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS).

所述方法最好还包括在至少一个其它流式传输对话中将内容多信道传送给除第二终端之外的至少一个其它终端的步骤。Preferably, the method further comprises the step of multicasting the content to at least one other terminal than the second terminal in at least one other streaming session.

在具有多个流式传输对话的实施例中，各流式传输对话可以与其它流式传输对话相对独立地形成，因此对话可以在不同的时间或相同的时间开始或结束。各对话最好可以响应各个终端并独立于其它流式传输对话而终止。In embodiments with multiple streaming sessions, each streaming session may be formed relatively independently of the other streaming sessions, so sessions may start or end at different times or at the same time. Preferably, each session can be terminated in response to each terminal and independently of other streaming sessions.

根据本发明的第二方面提供了一种通信系统，包括：According to a second aspect of the present invention, a communication system is provided, including:

具有第一终端和第二终端的多个终端；a plurality of terminals having a first terminal and a second terminal;

可访问多个终端的通信服务器；communication server with access to multiple terminals;

用于从第一终端中发送内容和描述内容的信息给通信服务器的装置；以及means for sending content and information describing the content from the first terminal to the communication server; and

用于从通信服务器中发送通知消息给第二终端的装置；means for sending a notification message from the communication server to the second terminal;

其特征在于，所述系统还包括：It is characterized in that the system also includes:

利用描述内容的信息在通信服务器和第二终端之间形成流式传输对话的装置；以及means for forming a streaming session between the communication server and the second terminal using information describing the content; and

在流式传输对话期间将内容从通信服务器中以顺序子部分的形式传送给第二终端的装置。Means for transferring content in sequential sub-parts from a communication server to a second terminal during a streaming session.

所述系统最好还包括可在第一终端处产生内容的装置。Preferably, the system further comprises means operable to generate content at the first terminal.

所述系统最好还包括可在流式传输对话期间在第二终端处以流的形式显示所接收的内容的装置。Preferably, the system further comprises means for displaying the received content in streaming form at the second terminal during the streaming session.

根据本发明的第三方面提供了一种用于服务多个终端的通信服务器，所述通信服务器包括：According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a communication server for serving multiple terminals, the communication server comprising:

从第一终端中接收内容和描述内容的信息的装置；以及means for receiving content and information describing the content from the first terminal; and

将通知消息发送给第二终端的装置，通知消息通知第二终端可以接收内容；An apparatus for sending a notification message to the second terminal, where the notification message notifies the second terminal that the content can be received;

其特征在于，所述服务器还包括：It is characterized in that the server also includes:

利用描述内容的信息与第二终端形成流式传输对话的装置；以及means for forming a streaming session with a second terminal using information describing the content; and

在流式传输对话期间将内容以顺序子部分的形式传送给第二终端的装置。Means for delivering the content in the form of sequential sub-parts to the second terminal during the streaming session.

根据本发明的第四方面提供的一种计算机程序产品，包括：A computer program product provided according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes:

计算机程序代码，可使通信服务器从第一终端中接收内容和描述内容的信息；以及computer program code that causes the communications server to receive content and information describing the content from the first terminal; and

计算机程序代码，可使通信服务器将通知消息发送给第二终端，通知消息通知第二终端可以接收内容；The computer program code is capable of causing the communication server to send a notification message to the second terminal, and the notification message notifies the second terminal that the content can be received;

其特征在于，所述计算机程序产品还包括：It is characterized in that the computer program product also includes:

计算机程序代码，可使通信服务器利用描述内容的信息在通信服务器和第二终端之间形成流式传输对话；以及computer program code that causes the communication server to form a streaming session between the communication server and the second terminal using information describing the content; and

计算机程序代码，可使通信服务器在流式传输对话期间将内容以顺序子部分的形式传送给第二终端。Computer program code operable to cause the communication server to transmit the content in sequential sub-portions to the second terminal during the streaming session.

根据本发明的第五方面提供了一种通信设备，它包括：According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a communication device is provided, which includes:

用于从通信服务器中接收通信设备所需的描述消息的信息的装置；means for receiving information describing a message required by a communication device from a communication server;

其特征在于，It is characterized in that,

所述消息包括流式分量；said message includes a streaming component;

描述消息的信息包括描述流式分量的信息；以及the information describing the message includes information describing the streaming component; and

所述通信设备还包括：The communication device also includes:

利用描述流式分量的数据而与通信服务器形成流式传输对话，以便接收流式分量的装置；以及means for forming a streaming session with a communication server using data describing the streaming component to receive the streaming component; and

从通信服务器中以顺序子部分的形式接收内容的装置。A device that receives content from a communication server in sequential sub-parts.

根据本发明的第六方面提供了一种计算机程序产品，包括：According to a sixth aspect of the present invention there is provided a computer program product, comprising:

计算机程序代码，可使通信设备从通信服务器中接收通信设备所需的描述消息的信息；Computer program codes that enable the communication device to receive information describing the message required by the communication device from the communication server;

其特征在于，It is characterized in that,

所述消息包括流式分量；said message includes a streaming component;

所述计算机程序产品还包括：The computer program product also includes:

计算机程序代码，可使通信设备通过利用描述流式分量的信息而与通信服务器形成流式传输对话，以便接收流式分量；以及computer program code that causes a communications device to form a streaming session with a communications server to receive a streaming component by utilizing information describing the streaming component; and

计算机程序代码，可使通信设备以顺序子部分的形式从通信服务器中接收内容。Computer program code that causes a communications device to receive content from a communications server in sequential sub-parts.

通信设备最好为无线通信设备，且最好是移动电话。在另外一个实施例中，无线通信设备是无线通信适配器，可以向外部设备如台式PC提供无线通信功能。The communication device is preferably a wireless communication device, and most preferably a mobile phone. In another embodiment, the wireless communication device is a wireless communication adapter, which can provide wireless communication functions to external devices such as desktop PCs.

根据本发明的第七方面提供了一种通信设备所用的方法，所述方法包括步骤：According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method used by a communication device, the method comprising the steps of:

从通信服务器中接收通信设备所需的描述消息的信息；receiving from the communication server information describing the message required by the communication device;

其特征在于，It is characterized in that,

所述消息包括流式分量；said message includes a streaming component;

所述方法还包括步骤：The method also includes the steps of:

通过利用描述流式分量的信息与通信服务器形成流式传输对话，以便接收流式分量；以及receiving the streaming components by forming a streaming session with the communication server using information describing the streaming components; and

在流式传输对话期间显示流式分量。Displays the streaming component during a streaming session.

根据本发明的一个方面的实施例还可应用于本发明的各个其它方面。简单地说，所有实施例不必重复地与发明的每一方面相关。本领域的技术人员可以在本发明第一方面及其实施例的优点的基础上理解各个其它方面和实施例的优点。Embodiments according to one aspect of the present invention are also applicable to various other aspects of the present invention. Simply stated, all embodiments do not necessarily relate to every aspect of the invention repeatedly. Those skilled in the art can appreciate the advantages of various other aspects and embodiments based on the advantages of the first aspect of the present invention and its embodiments.

本发明将通过示例并参考附图来进行描述，其中：The invention will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

图1是基于因特网的电子邮件系统的示意图；Fig. 1 is the schematic diagram of the e-mail system based on Internet;

图2是根据本发明优选实施例的通信系统的图；Figure 2 is a diagram of a communication system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

图3表示了图2所示系统的流式数据传送的主协议层；Fig. 3 has represented the main protocol layer of the streaming data transmission of the system shown in Fig. 2;

图4表示了根据本发明的优选实施例，在接收器和媒体服务器之间的流式数据传送中发送消息的结构；Figure 4 shows the structure of sending messages in streaming data transmission between a receiver and a media server according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

图5表示了根据本发明的优选实施例，结合于蜂窝无线电话的移动通信终端的框图；Figure 5 shows a block diagram of a mobile communication terminal integrated into a cellular radiotelephone according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

图6表示了根据本发明另一实施例的用于台式PC的无线适配器卡。FIG. 6 shows a wireless adapter card for a desktop PC according to another embodiment of the present invention.

在上文中已经介绍了图1。Figure 1 has been introduced above.

接着将简短地概括本发明的优选实施例，然后再参考图2到6详细地进行介绍。A preferred embodiment of the present invention will then be briefly summarized before being described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6 .

根据本发明的优选实施例，流式传输结合于多媒体消息服务(MMS)中。在此方面需要进行三个阶段的过程。在第一阶段(阶段1)中，发送器(发送终端)将多媒体消息，或更准确地说是媒体内容传送给媒体(流式传输)服务器。在第二阶段(阶段2)中，一个或多个接收器(接收终端)被通知可以接收所传送的媒体内容。在第三阶段(阶段3)中，媒体内容被传送给接收器。在阶段2中进行的通知最好通过由发送器经多媒体消息服务器(MMS)将通知消息发送给接收器来进行。一般来说，MMS服务器存储通知消息，然后将其转发给接收器。如果转发不成功，它将在晚些时候再发送所存储的通知消息。According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the streaming is integrated in Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS). A three-stage process is required in this regard. In a first phase (Phase 1 ), the sender (sending terminal) transmits the multimedia message, or more precisely the media content, to the media (streaming) server. In the second phase (phase 2), one or more receivers (receiving terminals) are notified that the transmitted media content can be received. In the third phase (Phase 3), the media content is delivered to the receiver. The notification in phase 2 is preferably done by the sender sending a notification message to the receiver via a Multimedia Message Server (MMS). Generally speaking, the MMS server stores the notification message and then forwards it to the receiver. If the forwarding is unsuccessful, it will send the stored notification message at a later time.

流式传输最好在第一和第三阶段中进行，即当上传媒体内容到媒体(流式传输)服务器时和从媒体(流式传输)服务器中下载媒体内容时。应注意的是，上传阶段(阶段1)中的流式传输不是本发明方法的主要特征。然而，在阶段1和3中利用流式传输可以减小从发送器中开始传送媒体内容和在接收器中开始进行流式传输之间的延迟。它还具有可减小媒体(流式传输)服务器所需的存储容量的效果，并能有效地在MMS中实现实时或接近实时的流式传输。Streaming is preferably performed in the first and third stages, ie when uploading media content to and downloading media content from the media (streaming) server. It should be noted that streaming in the upload phase (phase 1) is not the main feature of the method of the invention. However, utilizing streaming in phases 1 and 3 can reduce the delay between the start of delivery of the media content in the sender and the start of streaming in the receiver. It also has the effect of reducing the storage capacity required by the media (streaming) server and effectively enabling real-time or near-real-time streaming in MMS.

本方法的阶段2可视为消息控制阶段，它涉及通过MMS服务器将多媒体消息和与流式传输有关的信息转发给接收器(多媒体消息的目标接收器)。阶段1和2可顺序地或基本同时地进行，而阶段3可以在接收器接收到通知消息时自动地进行，或者是根据接收器用户的意愿晚些时候再进行。因此，本发明提供了接收器可在任何时间播放流式媒体内容的灵活性。优选实施例并没有在媒体内容的大小或在多信道传送时接收器的数量方面加以限制。优选实施例是基于存储-转发方法，因此它符合其它MMS方法。这就使得任何不能流化或者类型不适于进行流式传输的媒体内容可以通过如当前MMS规范中指定的传统方式被下载到接收器中。Phase 2 of the method can be seen as a message control phase, which involves forwarding the multimedia message and streaming-related information to the receiver (the intended receiver of the multimedia message) via the MMS server. Phases 1 and 2 can be performed sequentially or substantially simultaneously, while phase 3 can be performed automatically when the receiver receives the notification message, or at a later time at the receiver's user's discretion. Thus, the present invention provides the flexibility that a receiver can play streaming media content at any time. The preferred embodiment is not limited in the size of the media content or in the number of receivers when multicasting. The preferred embodiment is based on a store-and-forward method, so it complies with other MMS methods. This allows any media content that cannot be streamed or is not of a type suitable for streaming to be downloaded to the receiver by conventional means as specified in current MMS specifications.

本发明的一个优点是流式传输功能的实施可在多方面增强所建议的MMS，尤其是在媒体内容很大或是在进行多信道传送时。由于在MMS中进行流式传输的存储-转发方法使得接收器可以充分灵活地决定是否和何时接收和播放多媒体消息中的媒体内容，因此这种方法是有效的和所希望的。本发明还在所建议的MMS的框架中提供了流式传输功能，因此它和现有的MMS标准完全兼容。One advantage of the present invention is that the implementation of the streaming function can enhance the proposed MMS in many ways, especially when the media content is large or when it is multi-channeled. This approach is efficient and desirable since the store-and-forward approach to streaming in MMS allows the receiver sufficient flexibility in deciding whether and when to receive and play media content in a multimedia message. The present invention also provides streaming functionality within the framework of the proposed MMS, so it is fully compatible with existing MMS standards.

下文中描述的本发明的实施例将概述在MMS中进行流式传输的主要步骤。The embodiments of the invention described below will outline the main steps of streaming in MMS.

图2是根据本发明优选实施例的通信系统20的图。系统20包括发送器21，具有媒体服务器22和MMS服务器23的MMS中心(MMSC)，以及接收器24。MMSC还可被视为通信服务器。FIG. 2 is a diagram of acommunication system 20 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Thesystem 20 includes asender 21 , an MMS center (MMSC) with amedia server 22 and anMMS server 23 , and areceiver 24 . The MMSC can also be considered as a communication server.

在这个多媒体消息流存储方法的示例中，发送器21为移动终端，装有视频照相机25和可生成要传送给接收器24的媒体内容(音频/视频剪辑)的麦克风(未示出)。接收器24为移动终端，装有适当的显示软件和可显示媒体内容(音频/视频剪辑)的设备。通常，发送器21和接收器24是相似的设备，之所以其中之一为发送器21而另一个为接收器24，只是因为它们的角色为发送方和接收方(发送器和接收器)。下面将详细地描述本发明方法的三个阶段。In this example of a multimedia message stream storage method, thesender 21 is a mobile terminal equipped with avideo camera 25 and a microphone (not shown) capable of generating media content (audio/video clips) to be transmitted to thereceiver 24 . Thereceiver 24 is a mobile terminal, equipped with appropriate display software and devices capable of displaying media content (audio/video clips). Typically, thetransmitter 21 andreceiver 24 are similar devices, one being thetransmitter 21 and the other thereceiver 24 simply because of their role as sender and receiver (transmitter and receiver). The three stages of the method of the present invention will be described in detail below.

在阶段1中，发送器21与媒体(流式传输)服务器22之间建立流式传输对话，媒体(流式传输)服务器22开始在预定位置存储媒体内容。这个阶段可视为媒体上传阶段。In phase 1, a streaming session is established between thesender 21 and the media (streaming)server 22, and the media (streaming)server 22 starts storing media content at a predetermined location. This phase can be considered as the media upload phase.

在阶段2中，发送器21通过MMS服务器23发送通知给接收器24，通知有关被存储的媒体内容。通知包括在接收器24和媒体服务器22之间建立另一流式传输对话所需的显示描述信息。显示描述信息包括但不限于下述数据：媒体服务器的网络地址；存取机制的具体内容，通过存取机制可以从媒体服务器22中重新获得媒体内容；将进行流式传输的媒体类型；用于对媒体内容进行编码的编码方法和用于下载媒体的传输协议的指示。In phase 2, thesender 21 sends a notification to thereceiver 24 via theMMS server 23, informing about the stored media content. The notification includes display descriptive information needed to establish another streaming session betweenreceiver 24 andmedia server 22 . The display description information includes but is not limited to the following data: the network address of the media server; the specific content of the access mechanism, through which the media content can be retrieved from themedia server 22; the media type to be streamed; An indication of the encoding method used to encode the media content and the transport protocol used to download the media.

在阶段3中，接收器24基于所接收的通知消息中的信息而建立与媒体服务器22的流式传输对话，接收器24开始下载并播放媒体。这个阶段可视为媒体下载阶段。媒体内容按照内容子部分的顺序来下载，各子部分代表流式传输对话的一个时间段。内容子部分可以分成数据信息包，或者一个子部分可包括多于一个数据信息包，这取决于媒体内容的编码类型和数据信息包的支付负荷的大小。In phase 3, thereceiver 24 establishes a streaming session with themedia server 22 based on the information in the received notification message, and thereceiver 24 starts downloading and playing the media. This phase can be considered as the media download phase. Media content is downloaded in the order of content subsections, each subsection representing a time segment of the streaming session. Content sub-parts may be divided into data packets, or a sub-part may comprise more than one data packet, depending on the encoding type of the media content and the size of the payment payload of the data packets.

媒体服务器22和MMS服务器23可以合并在一起，或者在网络中保持为不同的实体，取决于控制它们的服务提供器所选择的执行过程。媒体服务器22可位于例如移动通信网络中或位于因特网中，可以处于服务提供器的控制下而不负责移动通信网络中服务的提供。Themedia server 22 and theMMS server 23 may be combined together, or remain separate entities in the network, depending on the chosen implementation of the service provider controlling them. Themedia server 22 may be located eg in a mobile communication network or in the Internet, may be under the control of a service provider and not be responsible for the provision of services in the mobile communication network.

当在阶段1和阶段3都进行流式传输时，(通知)阶段2在(媒体上传)阶段1的期间进行，(媒体下载)阶段3也可在阶段1的期间开始。发送器21继续将媒体内容发送给媒体服务器22，而媒体服务器22同时将媒体内容中早先收到的部分发送给接收器24。接收器开始(且继续)播放媒体内容，其总的延迟取决于流式传输过程、数据传输延迟和阶段3开始的时间。如果阶段3不是自动地开始而是在提示和接收到接收器24的用户的允许时开始，那么总的延误通常大于在接收器24接收到通知时就立刻开始阶段3的延误。When streaming occurs in both phase 1 and phase 3, (notification) phase 2 takes place during (media upload) phase 1 and (media download) phase 3 can also start during phase 1. Thesender 21 continues to send the media content to themedia server 22, while themedia server 22 sends the earlier received part of the media content to thereceiver 24 at the same time. The receiver starts (and continues) to play the media content with an overall delay that depends on the streaming process, data transfer delay and when phase 3 starts. If Phase 3 does not start automatically but upon prompting and receiving permission from the user ofreceiver 24, the overall delay is usually greater than if Phase 3 starts immediately whenreceiver 24 receives the notification.

在另一实施例中，媒体内容已经存储在媒体服务器22中，发送器21知道媒体内容的显示描述信息。在此情况中可以省略阶段1。如上所述，媒体内容的流式传输对阶段1来说并不重要。例如，阶段1的非流式传输方法可以与商用内容提供器所提供的媒体内容结合使用，商用内容提供器例如为位于通信网络如因特网中的新闻内容提供器。内容提供器利用非流式传输在IP连接上的传送来更新存储在媒体服务器22中的媒体内容，并利用根据本发明阶段2的通知消息通知媒体内容的潜在接收器关于感兴趣的新剪辑的消息。通知消息的接收者如用户会向特定的内容提供器订阅。在通知消息的基础上，在各个方便的时间，各接收者决定是否与媒体服务器22形成流式传输对话，以重新获得由特定内容提供器所提供的新的媒体内容。这还代表了一种多信道传送方法的示例，它利用根据本发明的多媒体消息系统来进行流式传输。In another embodiment, the media content has been stored in themedia server 22, and thesender 21 knows the display description information of the media content. Phase 1 can be omitted in this case. As mentioned above, the streaming of media content is not critical to Phase 1. For example, the Phase 1 non-streaming method may be used in conjunction with media content provided by a commercial content provider, such as a news content provider located in a communication network such as the Internet. The content provider updates the media content stored in themedia server 22 with non-streaming delivery over the IP connection and informs potential receivers of the media content about new clips of interest using a notification message according to phase 2 of the invention. information. Receivers of notification messages, such as users, subscribe to specific content providers. Based on the notification message, at each convenient time, each recipient decides whether to form a streaming session with themedia server 22 to retrieve new media content provided by a specific content provider. This also represents an example of a multi-channel delivery method, which utilizes the multimedia messaging system according to the invention for streaming.

根据本发明的另一实施例，显示描述信息可以存储在除MMS服务器23或媒体服务器22之外的服务器中，如电子邮件或万维网服务器。在此实施例中，发送给接收器24的通知消息识别存储了显示描述信息的特定服务器，并用存取机制(HTTP GET，WSP GET，IMAP4，POP3，RSTP DESCRIBE)从那个位置上重新获得显示描述信息。然后，服务器24利用指定的存取机制从通知消息所识别的服务器中重新获得显示描述信息。然后，所得的显示描述信息引导服务器24调用此方法的阶段3，以重新获得和播放所存储的媒体内容。如果用于存储显示描述信息的服务器是MMS服务器23，当前的MMS方法可以用来直接地重新获得显示描述信息。在这种情况下，从发送器21到MMS服务器23的MMS通知携带显示描述信息，显示描述信息存储在MMS服务器23中。然后，从存储了显示描述的服务器到接收器24的通知中携带了所存储的显示描述的位置、服务器地址和其它所需的信息。最后，接收器24跟随MMS从MMS服务器23中重新获得显示描述。According to another embodiment of the present invention, the display description information may be stored in a server other than theMMS server 23 or themedia server 22, such as an email or a web server. In this embodiment, the notification message sent to thereceiver 24 identifies the particular server where the display description information is stored, and an access mechanism (HTTP GET, WSP GET, IMAP4, POP3, RSTP DESCRIBE) is used to retrieve the display description from that location information.Server 24 then retrieves the display description information from the server identified by the notification message using the specified access mechanism. The resulting display description then directs theserver 24 to invoke stage 3 of the method to retrieve and play the stored media content. If the server for storing the display description information is theMMS server 23, the current MMS method can be used to directly retrieve the display description information. In this case, the MMS notification from thesender 21 to theMMS server 23 carries display description information, which is stored in theMMS server 23 . The notification from the server storing the display description to thereceiver 24 then carries the location of the stored display description, server address and other required information. Finally, thereceiver 24 retrieves the display description from theMMS server 23 following the MMS.

因此应该注意的是，在某些情况下，发送器21发送给MMS服务器23的通知消息的信息内容可以和MMS服务器23发送给接收器24的信息内容不同。It should therefore be noted that, in some cases, the information content of the notification message sent by thesender 21 to theMMS server 23 may be different from the information content sent by theMMS server 23 to thereceiver 24 .

根据本发明的优选实施例，如果发送器21和接收器24处于不同的相互连接的MMS服务器的管理下(即它们具有不同的“服务”多媒体服务器)，通知消息可在MMS服务器之间的连接中传送。对于任何端对端通知来说，在服务MMS服务器之间可以连接在一起的服务器的数量不受限制。According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, if thesender 21 and thereceiver 24 are under the management of different interconnected MMS servers (i.e. they have different "service" multimedia servers), the notification message can be connected between the MMS servers. send in. There is no limit to the number of servers that can be connected together between serving MMS servers for any peer-to-peer notification.

在因特网域中存在着用于流式传输控制和媒体传输的现有协议。因此阶段1和3可以基于这些现有协议来执行。在这种方式中，由本发明提供的方法还可保证与因特网的交互工作，这也是当前MMS标准的一个重要目的。阶段2符合现有的MMS标准，因此可以提供与先前建议的机制之间的向后兼容性，以下载非流式的媒体内容。There are existing protocols for streaming control and media transmission in the Internet domain. Phases 1 and 3 can thus be performed based on these existing protocols. In this way, the method provided by the present invention also ensures interworking with the Internet, which is also an important purpose of the current MMS standard. Phase 2 complies with existing MMS standards and thus provides backward compatibility with previously proposed mechanisms for downloading non-streaming media content.

下面将通过示例来说明用于完成本发明优选实施例的不同阶段的一些实用方法。Some practical methods for accomplishing the different stages of the preferred embodiment of the invention are illustrated below by way of example.

实时流式传输协议(RTSP)是客户-服务器流式传输控制协议，可实现流式多媒体数据在IP网络上的可控制的传送。它是一个应用级的协议，可以与传输控制协议(TCP)或用户数据报文协议(UDP)一起使用。RTSP提供了使用RTP(实时传输协议)/UDP或任何其它的低级协议范围以用于媒体传输。RTSP包括一套控制流式音频和/或视频的方法/指令。在此方面最有用的方法/指令是OPTIONS，DESCRIBE，ANNOUNCE，SETUP，PLAY，PAUSE，TEARDOWN，REDIRECT和RECORD。媒体上传和下载可以利用SETUP，PLAY，RECORD，PAUSE和TEARDOWN来执行。The Real-time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) is a client-server streaming control protocol, which can realize the controllable transmission of streaming multimedia data on the IP network. It is an application-level protocol that can be used with Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) or User Datagram Protocol (UDP). RTSP provides scope for media transmission using RTP (Real Time Transport Protocol)/UDP or any other low-level protocol. RTSP includes a set of methods/instructions to control streaming audio and/or video. The most useful methods/commands for this are OPTIONS, DESCRIBE, ANNOUNCE, SETUP, PLAY, PAUSE, TEARDOWN, REDIRECT, and RECORD. Media upload and download can be performed using SETUP, PLAY, RECORD, PAUSE and TEARDOWN.

超文本传输协议(HTTP)还可用于通过将TCP用作传输协议来实现和控制本发明的媒体内容的上传和下载。HTTP具有对应于RTSP中RECORD和PLAY的方法/指令PUT和GET，可用于媒体的上传(阶段1)和下载(阶段3)。Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) can also be used to implement and control the uploading and downloading of media content of the present invention by using TCP as the transport protocol. HTTP has methods/commands PUT and GET corresponding to RECORD and PLAY in RTSP, which can be used for uploading (phase 1) and downloading (phase 3) of media.

UDP是无连接的轻量级的传输协议，可提供较短等待时间的通信。RTP特地为实时通信而设计，执行RTP使得它可提供位于UDP上层的数据信息包的时间标记和顺序号。多信道传送可利用RTP进行。RTP还设计用于与辅助控制协议RTCP(实时控制协议)结合使用，以得到有关数据传输的质量和正在进行的对话中的参与者信息的反馈。RTP和RTCP一起可提供用于携带实时内容所需的功能和控制机制，因此可实现媒体内容的流式传输，从而可以与本发明结合使用。UDP is a connectionless, lightweight transport protocol that provides communication with relatively low latency. RTP is designed specifically for real-time communication, implementing RTP so that it can provide timestamps and sequence numbers for data packets layered on top of UDP. Multicasting can be done using RTP. RTP is also designed to be used in conjunction with the auxiliary control protocol RTCP (Real Time Control Protocol) to get feedback on the quality of the data transmission and information about the participants in the ongoing conversation. Together, RTP and RTCP provide the required functionality and control mechanisms for carrying real-time content, thus enabling streaming of media content, and thus can be used in conjunction with the present invention.

TCP是面向连接的传输协议。与UDP相比，它以增加等待时间和更多管理费用为代价来保证数据信息包的准确和顺序的接收。在TCP中不能使用多信道传送，但如果初期缓冲时间不重要以及将进行流式化的媒体剪辑相对较短的话，TCP可以用于流式传输应用中。TCP is a connection-oriented transport protocol. Compared with UDP, it guarantees the accurate and sequential reception of data packets at the cost of increased latency and more overhead. Multicasting cannot be used in TCP, but TCP can be used in streaming applications if initial buffering time is not critical and the media clips to be streamed are relatively short.

在流式传输控制和媒体传输层的上层需要具有消息控制功能，以将流式传输结合于MMS中。图3表示了根据图2的流式数据传输系统的主协议层。消息控制层31提供消息发送功能的全面控制。例如在发送器21中，消息控制层31负责将媒体内容装配到多媒体消息中，并形成包括有描述媒体内容的信息的通知消息，通知消息然后又被发送给所需的接收器24。在接收器24中，消息控制层31负责解释所接收到的通知消息，抽取与将进行流式传输的媒体内容的位置有关的信息以及形成流式传输对话所必需的信息，以重新获得媒体内容。消息控制层31还负责控制任何不能进行流式传输和/或根据现有MMS不适于流式传输的媒体内容的传输和接收。The upper layer of the streaming control and media transport layer needs to have a message control function to integrate streaming into MMS. FIG. 3 shows the main protocol layers of the streaming data transmission system according to FIG. 2 . The message control layer 31 provides overall control of the message sending function. For example in thesender 21 , the message control layer 31 is responsible for assembling the media content into a multimedia message and forming a notification message including information describing the media content, which is then sent to the desiredreceiver 24 . In thereceiver 24, the message control layer 31 is responsible for interpreting the received notification messages, extracting information about the location of the media content to be streamed and information necessary to form a streaming session to retrieve the media content . The message control layer 31 is also responsible for controlling the transmission and reception of any media content that cannot be streamed and/or is not suitable for streaming according to existing MMS.

流式传输层32由消息控制层31控制。它负责根据消息控制层31提供的信息或各媒体类型所预定的规则来对各种要进行流式传输的媒体内容形成流式传输对话。它还负责一旦建立了流式传输对话就控制/调节媒体内容的流式传输。在发送器21中，流式传输层32负责将媒体内容流式上传到媒体服务器22中，相反地，在接收器24中，它负责控制从媒体服务器22流式下载媒体内容。或者，在媒体服务器22中可在这样的情况下提供流式传输控制功能，即在阶段1和3中进行流式传输，使得在发送器21和接收器24之间可提供实时或接近实时的媒体内容的流式传输。媒体传输层33利用适当的传输协议来处理数据的实际传输。可以为不同媒体类型预先确定协议选择，或者根据通知消息中的信息，通过消息控制层和流式传输控制层31，32提示给媒体传输层33。在优选实施例中，媒体流式传输控制根据媒体传输层33所通知的数据传输通道来适应流式传输。The streaming layer 32 is controlled by the message control layer 31 . It is responsible for forming a streaming session for various media contents to be streamed according to the information provided by the message control layer 31 or the rules predetermined by each media type. It is also responsible for controlling/regulating the streaming of media content once the streaming session is established. In thesender 21 , the streaming layer 32 is responsible for streaming the upload of the media content into themedia server 22 , and conversely, in thereceiver 24 it is responsible for controlling the streaming of the media content from themedia server 22 . Alternatively, a streaming control function may be provided in themedia server 22 where streaming is performed in phases 1 and 3 so that real-time or near-real-time communication between thesender 21 andreceiver 24 may be provided. Streaming of media content. The media transport layer 33 handles the actual transmission of data using an appropriate transport protocol. The protocol selection can be predetermined for different media types, or prompted to the media transport layer 33 through the message control layer and streaming control layer 31, 32 according to the information in the notification message. In a preferred embodiment, the media streaming control adapts the streaming according to the data transport channel notified by the media transport layer 33 .

图4表示了根据本发明的优选实施例，在流式媒体内容下载期间接收器24和MMSC(或媒体服务器22)之间发送的不同控制消息的结构。它表明了当利用RTP/RTCP作为传输协议时，利用RTSP对话在接收器24中播放媒体剪辑的信息流。这就给出了可用于在本发明的阶段3中下载媒体剪辑的方法的一个示例。下面将说明发送给接收器24的控制消息。Figure 4 shows the structure of the different control messages sent between thereceiver 24 and the MMSC (or media server 22) during streaming media content download according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. It shows the information flow for playing a media clip inreceiver 24 using RTSP session when using RTP/RTCP as transport protocol. This gives an example of a method that can be used to download media clips in stage 3 of the present invention. The control messages sent to thereceiver 24 will be described below.

接收器24要求得到它在阶段2中已被通知的媒体内容。接收器24将用于建立流式传输的RTSP建立信息(41)发送给MMSC，并接收相应的确认(41ACK)。然后接收器24将RTSP播放指令消息(42)发送给MMSC，并接收相应的确认(42 ACK)。MMSC响应此播放指令，根据所发送的多媒体消息开始将RTP音频(43)和RTP视频(44)内容发送给接收器24。接收器24可通过RTCP消息(45)控制MMSC发送媒体内容。一旦接收器24的用户希望暂停内容的流式传输下载，他或她可请求暂停流式传输，作为响应，接收器将RTSP暂停消息(46)发送给MMSC，并接收相应的确认(46 ACK)。响应此RTSP暂停消息，MMSC暂停发送媒体内容(RTP音频和RTP视频)。接着，接收器24将RTSP拆卸消息(teardown message)(47)发送给MMSC来停止RTP对话，允许在迟些时候再继续进行流式传输。MMSC将相应的确认消息(47 ACK)发送回接收器24。Receiver 24 claims the media content it was notified about in phase 2 . Thereceiver 24 sends RTSP setup information (41) to the MMSC for setting up streaming and receives a corresponding acknowledgment (41 ACK).Receiver 24 then sends RTSP broadcast instruction message (42) to MMSC, and receives corresponding confirmation (42 ACK). In response to this play command, the MMSC starts sending RTP audio (43) and RTP video (44) content to thereceiver 24 according to the sent multimedia message.Receiver 24 can control MMSC to send media content through RTCP message (45). Once the user of thereceiver 24 wishes to pause the streaming download of the content, he or she may request to pause the streaming, in response the receiver sends an RTSP Pause message (46) to the MMSC and receives a corresponding acknowledgment (46 ACK) . In response to this RTSP Pause message, the MMSC suspends sending media content (RTP audio and RTP video). Then, thereceiver 24 sends an RTSP teardown message (47) to the MMSC to stop the RTP conversation, allowing streaming to continue at a later time. The MMSC sends back a corresponding acknowledgment message (47 ACK) to thereceiver 24.

通过用RECORD代替PLAY指令，可以实现与本发明的阶段1中媒体上传相似的对话，其中在接收器24的位置上应为发送器21。By replacing the PLAY instruction with RECORD, a dialog similar to the media upload in phase 1 of the present invention can be realized, where in the place of thereceiver 24 should be thesender 21 .

消息控制功能要求能进行端对端通知，这是因为如先前所述，接收器24要求与媒体内容有关的一定信息能进行流式化，以便加入到流式传输对话中。根据当前的MMS规范，描述媒体内容的信息与媒体内容本身封装在一起，因此无法独立地发送给接收器24。在没有此信息时，接收器24无法通过流式传输来下载媒体内容。通过提供媒体显示信息的分开的端对端通信，根据本发明的方法可以将其所需的信息提供给接收器24，以便通过流式传输来下载媒体内容。此外，现有的非流式传输MMS协议的范围可允许利用端对端消息经由MMS服务器来进行媒体显示信息的通信，使得根据本发明的方法与当前的MMS标准兼容。The message control function requires end-to-end notification because, as previously stated, thereceiver 24 requires certain information about the media content to be streamable in order to participate in the streaming session. According to the current MMS specification, the information describing the media content is encapsulated with the media content itself and therefore cannot be sent to thereceiver 24 independently. In the absence of this information, thereceiver 24 cannot download the media content through streaming. By providing a separate peer-to-peer communication of media display information, the method according to the invention can provide thereceiver 24 with the information it needs to download the media content by streaming. Furthermore, the scope of existing non-streaming MMS protocols may allow communication of media display information via an MMS server using peer-to-peer messages, making the method according to the invention compatible with current MMS standards.

RTSP被认为是在阶段1和3中实现和控制流式传输的最佳模式。如果用RTP/UDP或TCP作为媒体传输协议，在性能上需要进行一定程度的折衷。特别是，由于TCP是面向连接的协议，利用TCP来完成的话不能提供多信道传送功能。然而，TCP代表着能与本发明结合使用的另一种可行的媒体传输协议。实际上，其面向连接的特性在某些情况下具有优点，尤其是在需要更安全的流式传输时。根据本发明的优选实施例，现有的MMS协议用于在阶段2中从发送器21经由MMSC将显示描述信息的端对端通知提供给接收器24。RTSP is considered the best mode to implement and control streaming in phases 1 and 3. If RTP/UDP or TCP is used as the media transmission protocol, a certain degree of compromise is required in terms of performance. In particular, since TCP is a connection-oriented protocol, multicasting cannot be provided if implemented using TCP. However, TCP represents another possible media transport protocol that can be used in conjunction with the present invention. In fact, its connection-oriented nature has advantages in some situations, especially when more secure streaming is required. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an existing MMS protocol is used to provide an end-to-end notification showing descriptive information from thesender 21 to thereceiver 24 via the MMSC in phase 2 .

图5表示了结合于蜂窝无线电话的移动终端50(可以是发送器21或接收器24)的框图。移动终端50包括显示屏51，用于传送和接收无线电信号的收发器52，用于处理无线电信号与数据和声音的数字信号的相互转换的处理器(DSP)53，用户输入装置如小键盘或键盘54，由软件控制操作的中央处理单元55。移动终端50还包括用于存储数据和软件的存储器56。存储器可供DSP53和CPU55使用。软件包括操作系统和可控制移动终端50的操作并提供一定功能的应用软件，如MMS。移动终端50还包括可拆卸的智能卡，例如用于用户识别的SIM卡57。存储器56专门用于存储应用软件的部分是所谓的永久存储器，其即使在移动终端50的能量供应耗尽时也能保存内容。应用软件可以任何已知的现有技术存储，包括工厂安装，从个人计算机中存取并通过无线下载，例如从通信网络的服务器。所有的这些技术均可从Nokia9110通信装置中得知。Figure 5 shows a block diagram of a mobile terminal 50 (which may be either thetransmitter 21 or the receiver 24) incorporated into a cellular radiotelephone. The mobile terminal 50 includes a display screen 51, a transceiver 52 for transmitting and receiving radio signals, a processor (DSP) 53 for processing the conversion between radio signals and digital signals of data and voice, and user input devices such as a keypad or Keyboard 54, central processing unit 55 operated by software control. The mobile terminal 50 also includes a memory 56 for storing data and software. The memory can be used by DSP53 and CPU55. The software includes an operating system and application software that can control the operation of the mobile terminal 50 and provide certain functions, such as MMS. The mobile terminal 50 also includes a detachable smart card, such as a SIM card 57 for user identification. The part of the memory 56 dedicated to storing application software is a so-called persistent memory, which retains content even when the energy supply of the mobile terminal 50 is exhausted. Application software can be stored by any known prior art technique, including factory installation, accessed from a personal computer and downloaded over the air, for example from a server in a communication network. All of these techniques are known from the Nokia(R) 9110 communication device.

图6表示了根据本发明一个实施例的用于台式PC62的无线适配卡61，它可以用作发送器21或接收器24。无线适配卡安装在台式PC62的PCMCIA槽中(PCMCIA，个人计算机存储卡国际联盟)。FIG. 6 shows awireless adapter card 61 for adesktop PC 62, which can be used as either thetransmitter 21 or thereceiver 24, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The wireless adapter card is installed in the PCMCIA slot of the desktop PC62 (PCMCIA, Personal Computer Memory Card International Alliance).

虽然在上文中所描述的本发明是其在至少部分网络包括无线通信连接的通信网络中的应用，但应强调的是它的应用决不限于这种网络。本发明也可同样适用于网络中各个装置(发送器21，接收器24和网络服务器)之间的物理连接是部分或全部地通过固定线路连接而实现的网络中。Although the invention has been described above as its application in a communication network in which at least part of the network comprises a wireless communication connection, it should be emphasized that its application is in no way limited to such a network. The invention is equally applicable to networks in which the physical connections between the various devices (sender 21,receiver 24 and web server) in the network are realized partly or entirely by fixed line connections.

本发明所涉及的不同实施例的服务器和终端如MMSC、发送器21和接收器24的操作最好由计算机程序产品控制，它可使这些实体按照本发明的要求来操作。The operation of the servers and terminals of the different embodiments to which the present invention relates, such as the MMSC, thesender 21 and thereceiver 24, is preferably controlled by a computer program product which enables these entities to operate according to the requirements of the present invention.

上文中已经介绍了本发明的特殊执行过程和实施例。对于本领域的技术人员来说，很明显本发明并不限于上述实施例的细节，在不脱离本发明特征的前提下可以在利用等效装置的其它实施例中执行。本发明的范围只由所附的专利权利要求限制。Specific implementations and embodiments of the invention have been described above. It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not restricted to the details of the above-described embodiments, but can be implemented in other embodiments utilizing equivalent means without departing from the characteristics of the invention. The scope of the invention is only limited by the appended patent claims.